Behind Every Promise - An Educational Journey for Two Boys

PBS is showing a documentary called Behind Every Promise about the journey, over 13 years, of two African-American boys and their education.  I heard about it on NPR and it sounds very good. 

American Promise spans 13 years as Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson, middle-class African-American parents in Brooklyn, N.Y., turn their cameras on their son, Idris, and his best friend, Seun, who make their way through Dalton, one of the most prestigious private schools in the country. Chronicling the boys' divergent paths from kindergarten through high school graduation, this provocative, intimate documentary presents complicated truths about America’s struggle to come of age on issues of race, class and opportunity. Winner, U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award, 2013 Sundance Film Festival. 

KCTS is showing it on Tuesday, Feb. 4 at 1:30 am and Wednesday, Feb. 5 at 6 am.  It is also available to view online.

Comments

Anonymous said…
So much good stuff on PBS lately. I've been watching the American Experience series on the Amish. I knew a lot about them since I grew up in NY State, but I was quite shocked and dismayed that the courts allow the Amish to pull their kids out of school after 8th grade because it goes against their religion.

I think its very sad that those children don't get to explore their full intellectual potential. It's especially dismaying because farmland has become so expensive in PA, and everywhere, that many young men cannot afford to buy their own farms, so they end up getting other work to support their families. They don't seem to make the connection that a better education could provide them with better jobs.

I highly recommend the episodes if you have not seen them.

Solvay Girl
2/3/14, 11:58 AM
Melissa Westbrook said…
Solvay Girl, if you are interested in the Amish, there's also a great documentary called the Devil's Playground about an Amish rite-of-passage called Rumspringa. Eye-opening.
2/3/14, 12:49 PM
Anonymous said…
Thanks Melissa
Solvay Girl
2/3/14, 10:33 PM
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